Sport in Trigunia
|- |} Trigunians are fanatical sports fans. It has been speculated that during the years of Communist or totalitarian oppression, one of the few avenues of expression for Trigunians was through the playing or spectating of sporting events. Likewise, during those times, sports were subsidized and proved a cheap way to provide families and individuals with entertainment which drew large amounts of mixed-generational crowds. After generations of participating in fan organizations, spectating has become, in the words of one Trigunian sociologist, "the primary pastime of Trigunia". It is very generational obsession with spectating that entices Trigunians to continuously spend enormous amounts of time and money on their sports. Trigunians tend to be consistent fans of all the diverse team sports found throughout the nation, regardless of the sport or the gender of the team. It is not unusual to find the same fans at ice hockey, field hockey, curling, football, or rugby matches. Since Communist times, individual clubs owned and operated all professional (termed "Elite" in Trigunia) and semi-professional (termed "Amateur") sports in a town or region which is why nearly all professional sports are owned by only a few clubs. This narrowing of the number of clubs allowed fans to create a single organization which encompassed all sports; this allowed fans to easily support and foster obscure sports and gender play, especially female sports. Support for female team sports, while not as popular as men's sports, is consistently more popular across the board than in other countries. Major Professional & Amateur Clubs In Trigunia, the major professional and amateur sports clubs contain nearly all teams, both men and women's, within them. Ice Hockey - considered the national winter pastime; since winter is long, it is very popular - highest rated sporting events on television and attendance Ice Hockey Culture Tirgunian ice hockey culture has ingrained itself into the national culture, and many parts of Trigunian life revolve around it as the game has been glamorized to iconic levels. Ice hockey players, especially in the Elite level of the game, have become role models for the young and old alike with many children practicing the game and aspiring to obtain the wealth, power, and fame shown off by the top players. The culture of ice hockey can be easily divided into how the players, fans and clubs see the sport. History - began in 1750s as form of football on ice; soon evolved into use of sticks - found that sticks often deflated the ball; and poor areas began using scrunched tin cans - found that game could be faster and more exciting without a ball and tin cans caught on; eventually, developed into puck - organized first teams in 1860s; every village cordoned off a pond as a rink; still no rules - local Dukes met at conference to organize rules and play Governing Body Elite League Organization - both men and women share same name; often add "Ladies" to women's teams - oddly, with exception of many major clubs, arenas are relatively small (approx. 8-16,000) but gain most of their money through television licensing - used to be promotion & relegation system, that was ended in 2854, returned briefly in 2914-2916 seasons, then abandoned again for the 2917 seasons again Re-Organization of 3090 - in 3090, after nearly a decade of having over 1 billion people, the governing body decided to divide the league into divisions based around separate regions found in each Oblast - the governing body found that the influx of talented players meant that the top seven divisions were nearly equal in their abilities - since the reorganization, the number of clubs in the Elite League skyrocketed to nearly 200 - the league championship tournament takes the top four clubs from the Oblasts, often forced to compete in play-off matches to determine the so-called "Eligible" - each new division has its own championship and remain relatively self-contained - many initially complained of the new changes, especially the effective elimination of the Elite League & its division into 10 smaller leagues ''Trofyeĭ Elita'' - Elite Trophy; highest award for ice hockey - since the Elite League reorganization, the Elite Trophy became the largest tournament on Terra - single-elimination tournament that begins at the start of the season; includes clubs from outside the Oblast regional levels but within the same Oblast Field Hockey Governing Body Professional Teams ''Hokkyeĭ Elita Trofyeĭ'' Curling - nicknamed the "sport of princes" because of its ties to the nobility - originally came from Hulstria but was exported in the early 20th century and grew in appeal - in the winter, nearly all towns have a curling sheet alongside their hockey rink - often the sheet is linked to (or near in case it is outside) a drinking establishment Championship - national tournament takes place at Nonezhskoe ozero (Lake Nonezhskoe); used to be on the lake before the curling center was constructed ''Kubok Kërling'' Football Governing Body Professional Teams ''Elitnyh Seriĭ'' Rugby Governing Body Professional Teams ''Kubok Chempionov'' Individual Sports Ice Skating Figure Skating Speed Skating Swimming Continental Competitions Every other year the top three association football club teams from the nations of Keris meet for the ''Kerisiya Kontinentalʹnoĭ Superligi'' (Kerissian Continental Superleague - KKS). Every other year the top three hockey club teams from teh nations of Keris meet for the ''Kerisiya Hokkyeĭnaya Liga Chempionov'' (Kerissian Champions Hockey League - KHLC) Category:Trigunia